Greetings! Please accept this generic letter from me. It's all I have time to get out to everyone, but it should give you a glimpse of what life's like for the Sijswerda family here in the Netherlands. Write back soon!

I sit at a cluttered desk and try to formulate a scheme for writing about our move to the Netherlands. In fact for days now I've mulled over in my mind how I could capture the essence of this place in a few paragraphs. Perhaps I'll just give a random overview of what our new life is like. First things first.

WHERE WE LIVE
We're in a small town called Meerssen about 5 min. north of Maastricht by car. We rented a "tussen huis" or between house (i.e., a row house) with 3 stories and lots of stairs. Yesterday I tried to navigate a particularly narrow set of steps in my clogs and twisted my ankle. Ouch! From now on the clogs stay on the ground floor.

We were fortunate to find a home with lots of bedrooms (four), one of which Peter and I share as an office. It's where I sit now, listening to the sounds of traffic rising from the street and the hourly peal of bells from the church towers nearby. It's a fairly busy street, surprisingly narrow as are most of the streets here, which intersects with the main town street about a block from us. We have a couple of businesses on our street but mostly private homes, all close to the street (i.e., no front yard) with lace curtains hanging in the windows and a few plants on the windowsills. Our back yard is large by Dutch standards, terraced and gently sloping upward. The owner liked to garden, as do many of the Dutch, and there's some rhubarb growing and chives, which I hope to use soon. We've just been in our place a week and still have boxes to unpack. The biggest culture shock so far is not having closets! We had to buy an Ikea "kast" for our bedroom, but it doesn't hold a lot. Peter's going to rig up a hanging rack in a storage space under the eaves on the top floor.

LESS IS MORE
One thing I've come to realize is how much stuff clutters up our lives. The Dutch, I think, strive to keep things simple, and I look forward to learning to live that philosophy. I mean, really, how many coffee mugs do we need? When space is at a premium, you realize how unnecessary some of the stuff you have is. And even though we got rid of a lot of stuff before moving over here, a lot still clings to us or we cling to it, I'm not sure which.

This philosophy permeates the Dutch lifestyle. People shop almost every day for food because they don't have big refrigerators and freezers to fill up. An added benefit is you enjoy fresher food. The grocery stores are fun to visit. Yesterday I did some comparison shopping at some stores and found out I'd been shopping at the most expensive chain, Albert Heijn. The truth is the best place to shop is at the market: the outdoor stalls set up on certain days all over the area. Here in Meerssen the market's on Thursday. In Maastricht the "grote markt" (big market) is on Friday. It's easy to love market shopping, walking through these cornucopias of sights and smells.

One day soon after we arrived, we went to Antwerp, Belgium, an hour's drive, to the "vogel markt" where birds of all sizes and shapes are sold. Ordinary roosters to exotic parrots line the walking street in cages, screeching and squawking and singing in unison. And there were plenty of other types of wares for sale, not to mention meats, cheeses, fruits, vegetables. Peter's family were with us on that outing, which culminated at an outdoor terrace, where we enjoyed the beverage of our choice and the sounds of a South American band of Indians who played guitars and flutes. Scott, Jasper, and Ross chased pigeons nearby.

THE BOYS
One of my biggest worries was how Scott and Jasper would like living here. I'm thrilled to say they are doing great! Scott attends Form 1 at the international dept. of the high school, which is called Jeanne D'Arc College. He's making friends and getting used to a more structured and more demanding school routine. He doesn't complain about the work, though, so he must be enjoying it! He practiced for the first time with his new soccer team on Wed. evening, just a short walk from our house, and his former coach would have been proud to see Scott jump right in and hustle. Now keep in mind this is a Dutch neighborhood team, so Scott's the only American and non-Dutch speaker, but soccer (or voetball, as it's called here) crosses all language barriers, I guess. Anyhow, both Scott and Jasper will play games tomorrow. I'm glad they have a sport they can enjoy here.

Actually, they have another sport to enjoy: roller blading. We discovered a skating ramp about 5 minutes walk from our house, where Scott and Jasper are spending a lot of spare time, skating and hanging around with Dutch kids. Jasper came home one day and said, "Mom, this kid was talking to me in Dutch, and you know what? I think I understood a little!" Well, maybe you did, Jasper! Of course, they'll be learning Dutch in school, as well as picking it up "on the streets." They'll be fluent in no time. Jasper, like Scott, seems happy at school and with the new friends he's making there.

As for Ross, he's mastered the local greeting here: "Hoi!" (rhymes with boy) and bellows that out regularly, much to his brothers' delight. I've also caught him practicing the gutteral "g" sound. He actually throws it in places it doesn't belong, but at least he's trying! Ross attends the int'l preschool five mornings a week and has adjusted well to the routine. He likes to wear his Mickey Mouse backpack on his back, which holds his snack, diapers, and wipes, just like his brothers do.

THE PARENTS
Peter and I are slowly getting organized. Boy, this moving stuff is tough. We haven't had to move much since we got married, so this was a real wake up call. Almost everything made it across the ocean unscathed. One of our couches got rubbed a little enroute, so the finish is a little worn, and I lost one ceramic dish, but all told, Peter did a fabulous job of packing. The Suburban arrived intact as well, and boy do we get some strares from folks in this land of economy cars. I think we'll stay a one-car family, at least for now. Good thing, too, because, it's going to cost a pretty penny to keep that Suburban on the road. Filling the gas tank (are you ready) cost $120!! Yikes! But, believe me, we'll use the car sparingly and try to make each tank last. On the plus side, the 'Burb is paid for, so we don't have to make car payments of $300+ a month.

Speaking of money, that's the next order on the agenda: making some, that is. we've pretty much decided to do a free family magazine here, just like Tidewater Parent, but with one little difference. It'll be in Dutch! I'd sorta hoped we could do a publication in English for the expatriate community in Holland, but we just don't think that will fly. On the other hand, the market seems ripe for a "Familiekrant" so we'll start working on getting a South Limburg edition up and running before the end of the year. We plan to hire employees to do the work, so this will be a little less hands-on for us. We'll probably rent office space, too, and keep our home life and our work life a little more separate. I'm also going to recruit au pairs on the side. I've already placed my first ad, which comes out next week. And the idea was to do some creative writing over here. One of my first pieces will be about how bicycling is an art form here and so, so Dutch. Socially, Peter and I are slowly meeting some people through the school. Lots of Brits and Americans, a few Swedes, and an assortment of other nationalities. One American mom I met, whose son is in Scott's class, has two teen-aged daughters who babysit and they live just 10 min. up the road. Yee-hah! In fact, I want to book one of the girls for this weekend. Peter and I need some recreation!

THE LAY OF THE LAND
Sometimes it feels more like we're in Switzerland when I look around at the mountains and valleys that weave through this southern province of the Netherlands. Well, I exaggerate a bit; they're not exactly the Alps, but the foothills of the Ardennes. It's just incredibly picturesque. Of course, the architecture is always fascinating: houses, some with thatched roofs, most with tiled roofs, almost all built with brick and complemented by golden-brown, glossy wooden shutters and trim. The older row houses along town streets and large farms along country roads are so meticulously kept and lovingly maintained. Folks here know what character means when it comes to living space. They invented the word "cozy," I think, with their geraniums spilling from windowboxes and colorful flowers and shrubs dotting their compact gardens.

In fact, real estate is at a premium here and there's precious little available. Peter read that the prices of homes have doubled here in the last ten years. For a decent-sized, self-standing home 20 years old or older, you'd pay at least $200,000. Don't even ask about new homes. It's actually the price of the land that's so dear. Peter and I have visions of building our own cozy house atop a mountain here with a view of towns and valleys spread beneath our feet . . . Then we see how much the land costs to buy, and we wake up to reality. Well, we've got a six-month lease on our place, so who knows what the future will bring.

I'll write again soon with more news and insight on this new life we're leading. Bye for now.

Peggy and family